Facebook founder turned philanthropist donated a staggering 100 million dollars to help invigorate Newark’s buckling education system. A good friend working closely with Mayor Cory Booker and Zuckerberg sent along these brand new images of a visit the pair made to Newark’s KIPP school.

While some viewed Zuckerberg’s generous and unselfish donation as a public relations move, Mayor Booker showed the world otherwise, “We had to convince Mark not to be anonymous.”

In his post on Facebook, Mark went public with his reasons for donating such a substantial amount in his attempts to make a difference to the Newark public school district…

I feel very fortunate for the opportunities I’ve been given because of my education, including the chance to work with talented people and build a great company at such a young age. Rather than waiting until later in life to focus on giving back, I’ve spent a lot of the last year researching and looking for the most impactful ways to improve education starting in America.

On supporting Mayor Booker, Zuckerberg explained his inspiration…

Mayor Booker has committed to make education his single highest priority for his current term in office. I believe in the Mayor and his vision, and that’s why I want to help them succeed. Using my own Facebook stock, I’m creating the Startup: Education foundation with over $100 million to invest in educating and improving the lives of young people.

Zuckerberg also challenged other entrepreneurs and leaders to also ebrace educational philanthropy…

I’m also challenging others who want to improve education in America to match my contributions.

A very generous and thoughtful move by Mark Zuckerberg. Why wait indeed? He can make a clear and long-term impact, as can many others in Silicon Valley. There's no better time to make a personal effort to improve the educational experience for our young people than right now. Their future, and our nation's future, depends on our ability to engage with that experience…not disengage from it. Kudos also to Mayor Booker and best wishes to the young people at KIPP and throughout Newark!!

http://www.briansolis.com briansolis

Thanks Dan! We can all do a little something in order to make a big difference.

http://twitter.com/derekrogerson Derek Rogerson

Clearly, this is reactionary PR to combat the “Social Network” movie and no motivation whatsoever to do with philanthropy.

http://twitter.com/maroonblazer Nick Ketter

As PR events go, the timing of this was a blunder. By making this announcement on the same day/week that “The Social Network” is released only draws attention and contrast to the film and Zuckerberg – in a bad way. A more effective approach would've been to wait a few weeks/months for the buzz of the movie to die down, THEN make the announcement. The impression that would be left in most people's minds would be one of generous giving, then reinforced by his continued philanthropy. Instead it only makes Zuckerberg look desperate and conniving, which come to think of it is not inconsistent with his portrayal in the film.

PR 2.0? Hardly.

http://facebook.com/marismith Mari Smith

Wonderful post, Brian. Kudos for choosing to focus on the positive side of Zuckerberg. I watched both Oprah shows on education last week and was so moved to tears at the passion, commitment and massive action of people like Geoffrey Canada, Mayor Booker, Gov. Christie and our own Mark Zuckerberg.

I also saw The Social Network movie the other week; though he did a great job, I was disappointed that Sorkin chose to focus on all the historical drama and legal battles from “The Accidental Billionaires” book… sells more movie tickets, I guess.

Facebook is one of the most profound, life-altering, and fastest-growing businesses in history. I'd love to see a movie focusing on all the positive good Facebook as a platform has done and continues to do. Maybe a movie based on Emily Liebert's “Facebook Fairytales.”

I say hats off to Zuck if he wants to be philanthropic right now and what a wonderful choice for his money. Under the mentorship of a powerhouse like Mayor Booker, only good can come of this move. I think Zuckerberg could well be the next Andrew Carnegie and Bill Gates combined.

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ABOUT ME

Brian Solis is a digital analyst, anthropologist, and also a futurist. In his work at Altimeter Group, Solis studies the effects of disruptive technology on business and society. He is an avid keynote speaker and award-winning author who is globally recognized as one of the most prominent thought leaders in digital transformation.

His most recent book, What's the Future of Business: Changing the Way Businesses Create Experiences (WTF), explores the landscape of connected consumerism and how business and customer relationships unfold in four distinct moments of truth. His previous book, The End of Business as Usual, explores the emergence of Generation-C, a new generation of customers and employees and how businesses must adapt to reach them. In 2009, Solis released Engage, which is regarded as the industry reference guide for businesses to market, sell and service in the social web.